CTIA: Vodafone boss hails the era of mobile internet

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Wireless devices will be the main method of internet access - assuming the wireless industry can improve on ease of use and provide consistent, high-speed data services.

In emerging markets, most people will use the internet for the first time on a mobile device, Vodafone's chief executive Arun Sarin told delegates to this year's CTIA Wireless event in Las Vegas. "Mobile will become the main method of accessing the Internet over time," Sarin said.

But the trend is by no means restricted to the developing world. The trend towards fast networks, from 3G to HSDPA and EVDO and eventually, to LTE (Long Term Evolution) will bring cellular access speeds up to, and then beyond wireline capabilities, Sarin said.

Investment by the carriers, better devices and more attention to ease of use mean that mobile networks will overtake the fixed internet for "mainstream" internet usage. Vodafone already 25 million customers covered by its international 3G "footprint", and three million business users with 3G or HSDPA data cards or USB dongles, and 2.5 million people using "handheld business devices". Revenue from this sector is growing in double digits, Sarin said.

For this to continue, however, the global mobile industry needs to take a number of specific steps, Sarin cautioned. The first is to develop "attractive devices that are siutable for the mobile Internet, with high-resolution screens, easy to use interfaces and that minimise the number of keystrokes".

The industry also needs to deliver suitable services, from "bite sized" content to full access TV, "but crucially this needs to be suitable for the mobile platform," Sarin explained. He also called on the industry to be more creative around device design and interfaces.

Most of all, though, growth of the wireless internet will depend on investment in fast wireless networks. "We will deliver the network speeds that are consistent with the needs of our customers," said Sarin. "We must invest in networks today to realise the potential for tomorrow. We have made that investment with HSDPA (high-speed download packet access) and with Verizon in EV-DO and at some point our technology path will evolve to LTE."

But Sarin had a less positive message for mobile device manufacturers and operating systems designers. The current dozens of mobile operating systems hampers innovation. "I am not saying there should be one operating system but that there should be three, four or five, to encourage economies of scale and the development of new applications," Sarin said. He listed Android, Microsoft, Symbian, and Linux as possible options, as well as "others", but he did not mention either Apple or RIM's operating systems by name.

"Customers want fast wireless broadband but customers also want simplicity," Sarin said.

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